PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
Nigeria: President Buhari orders arrest of indicted persons over fraudulent financial deals in arms procurement
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA) - Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari, has ordered relevant security organizations to arrest and bring to book, all individuals who have been found complicit in the illicit and fraudulent financial transactions following the procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector from 2007 to date.
According to a presidency press statement here Tuesday, signed by Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Buhari gave the directive following an interim report from a 13-man committee, set up by the Office of the National Security Adviser to audit the procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector from 2007 to date.
The statement said "While the committee which was inaugurated on 31 August 2015 is yet to complete its work, its interim report has unearthed several illicit and fraudulent financial transactions.
"As part of the findings, the committee analyzed interventions from some organizations that provided funds to the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Defence Headquarters, Army Headquarters Naval Headquarters and Nigerian Air Force Headquarters, both in local and foreign currencies."
According to the statement, "So far the total extra budgetary interventions articulated by the committee is 643,817,955,885.18 Naira."
It said "The foreign currency component is to the tune of US$2,193,815,000.83".
These amounts, the statement indicated, exclude grants from State Governments and funds collected by the Department of Security Services(DSS) and the Police, observing that in spite of "this huge financial intervention, very little was expended to support defence procurement".
According to the statement, "The committee also observed that of the 513 contracts awarded at US$8,356,525,184.32; 2,189,265,724,404.55 Naira and 54,000.00 Euros; Fifty Three (53) were failed contracts amounting to US$2,378,939,066.27 and 13,729,342,329.87 Naira respectively.
"Interestingly, it was noted that the amount of foreign currency spent on failed contracts was more than double the US$1 billion loan that the National Assembly approved for borrowing to fight the insurgency in the North East.
"The committee also discovered that payments to the tune of 3,850,000,000.00 Naira were made to a single company by the former NSA without documented evidence of contractual agreements or fulfilment of tax obligations to the Federal government."
It said that "Further findings revealed that between March 2012 and March 2015, the erstwhile NSA, Lt.-Col. MS Dasuki (rtd), awarded fictitious and phantom contracts to the tune of 2,219,188,609.50 Naira, US$1,671,742,613.58 and 9,905,477.00 Euros."
The contracts, it said, which were said to be for the purchase of 4 Alpha Jets, 12 helicopters, bombs and ammunition, were not executed and the equipment were never supplied to the Nigerian Air Force, neither are they in its inventory.
It said that even more disturbing was the discovery that out of these figures, two companies were awarded contracts to the tune of 350,000,000.00 Naira, US$1,661,670,469.71 and 9,905,477.00 Euros alone, adding that "This was without prejudice to the consistent non-performance of the companies in the previous contracts awarded."
"Additionally, it was discovered that the former NSA directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer the sum of US$132,050,486.97 and 9,905,473.55 Euros to the accounts of Societe D’equipmente Internationaux in West Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America for un-ascertained purposes, without any contract documents to explain the transactions."
It said "The findings made so far are extremely worrying considering that the interventions were granted within the same period that our troops fighting the insurgency in the North East were in desperate need of platforms, military equipment and ammunition."
It said "Had the funds siphoned to these non-performing companies been properly used for the purpose they were meant for, thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided.
"Furthermore, the ridicule Nigeria has faced in the international community would have been avoided. It is worrisome and disappointing that those entrusted with the security of this great nation were busy using proxies to siphon the national treasury, while innocent lives were wasted daily."
-0- PANA PR/VAO 17Nov2015
According to a presidency press statement here Tuesday, signed by Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Buhari gave the directive following an interim report from a 13-man committee, set up by the Office of the National Security Adviser to audit the procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector from 2007 to date.
The statement said "While the committee which was inaugurated on 31 August 2015 is yet to complete its work, its interim report has unearthed several illicit and fraudulent financial transactions.
"As part of the findings, the committee analyzed interventions from some organizations that provided funds to the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Defence Headquarters, Army Headquarters Naval Headquarters and Nigerian Air Force Headquarters, both in local and foreign currencies."
According to the statement, "So far the total extra budgetary interventions articulated by the committee is 643,817,955,885.18 Naira."
It said "The foreign currency component is to the tune of US$2,193,815,000.83".
These amounts, the statement indicated, exclude grants from State Governments and funds collected by the Department of Security Services(DSS) and the Police, observing that in spite of "this huge financial intervention, very little was expended to support defence procurement".
According to the statement, "The committee also observed that of the 513 contracts awarded at US$8,356,525,184.32; 2,189,265,724,404.55 Naira and 54,000.00 Euros; Fifty Three (53) were failed contracts amounting to US$2,378,939,066.27 and 13,729,342,329.87 Naira respectively.
"Interestingly, it was noted that the amount of foreign currency spent on failed contracts was more than double the US$1 billion loan that the National Assembly approved for borrowing to fight the insurgency in the North East.
"The committee also discovered that payments to the tune of 3,850,000,000.00 Naira were made to a single company by the former NSA without documented evidence of contractual agreements or fulfilment of tax obligations to the Federal government."
It said that "Further findings revealed that between March 2012 and March 2015, the erstwhile NSA, Lt.-Col. MS Dasuki (rtd), awarded fictitious and phantom contracts to the tune of 2,219,188,609.50 Naira, US$1,671,742,613.58 and 9,905,477.00 Euros."
The contracts, it said, which were said to be for the purchase of 4 Alpha Jets, 12 helicopters, bombs and ammunition, were not executed and the equipment were never supplied to the Nigerian Air Force, neither are they in its inventory.
It said that even more disturbing was the discovery that out of these figures, two companies were awarded contracts to the tune of 350,000,000.00 Naira, US$1,661,670,469.71 and 9,905,477.00 Euros alone, adding that "This was without prejudice to the consistent non-performance of the companies in the previous contracts awarded."
"Additionally, it was discovered that the former NSA directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer the sum of US$132,050,486.97 and 9,905,473.55 Euros to the accounts of Societe D’equipmente Internationaux in West Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America for un-ascertained purposes, without any contract documents to explain the transactions."
It said "The findings made so far are extremely worrying considering that the interventions were granted within the same period that our troops fighting the insurgency in the North East were in desperate need of platforms, military equipment and ammunition."
It said "Had the funds siphoned to these non-performing companies been properly used for the purpose they were meant for, thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided.
"Furthermore, the ridicule Nigeria has faced in the international community would have been avoided. It is worrisome and disappointing that those entrusted with the security of this great nation were busy using proxies to siphon the national treasury, while innocent lives were wasted daily."
-0- PANA PR/VAO 17Nov2015
